 What's the matter? What is it? It's a case for Nick Carter, master detective. Yes, it's another case for that most famous of all man hunters. The detective whose ability at solving crime is unequaled in the history of detective fiction. Nick Carter, master detective. A shot. A man falls dead. So begins a strange adventure for Nick Carter, master detective. An adventure in which a murder seemed to be no murder at all. And the dead body vanished into thin air. The case of the disappearing corpse. What brings you down here to headquarters so early in the morning? It's only just ten o'clock. Well, I've been out in the country for the past couple of weeks writing an article on crime detection methods. Finished it last night. Huh? You stopped into my way back to my office past the time of day. And that's what's doing. Eh, it's pretty quiet, Nick. Nothing exciting's happened in the past ten days. Oh, Maddie, haven't you even got one simple little murder just to keep me in practice? I'm bored. Ah, well, would you be interested in checking up on a suicide? What's that to investigate about a suicide? Well, you never can tell, Nick. I just got a report that a guy bumped himself off in an uptown apartment house. I was going up to take a look at it myself, but the commissioner just called and must seem in his office right away. Eh, you want to go up in my place? Oh, I don't know, Maddie. Well, if it's just the usual routine, you can lay off after you make the call. Anybody else going up? Medical examiners going along? Well, I called my office a few minutes ago and Pat's had nothing for me, so I might as well run up and see what it's all about. What's the address? Hmm? Oh, let me see. It's 717 West Hampton Street. Apartment 4. Okay, Maddie. See you when we get back. Well, this is West Hampton Street. What was that number, Doc? 717. It ought to be just a head, Nick. Ah, yeah, 695, 701, 709. There it is, 717. That's a pretty swanky place, Nick. You can't live here on a white-collar salary. The elevator. Waiting for us. Apartment 4, wasn't it? Yeah. Get in and push the button. Apartment 4, right across the hall here. Yes, sir. Police department. You report a suicide? Oh, yes, sir. Won't you come in, please? Thank you. He...the body's right in the living room there, to your left. Ah, yes. I see it. Well, dozens have seen there be much of a question about it's being suicide. You're the butler? Yes, sir. My name is Jordan. What do you know about this, Jordan? Very little, sir. Mr. Warner, he's Mr. Miller's nephew, came in about an hour ago and found his uncle lying there in the middle of the floor. I hadn't come down, but he called me and I reported it to the police. I've touched nothing since. Where's Mr. Warner now? Is he here? Yes, sir. He's upstairs in the library. He'll be down in a moment. I see. This dead man? Mr. Miller? Yes, sir. Mr. Anthony Miller. This is his apartment. His niece and I live here with him. Where's his niece now? She's dressing, sir. She'll be down with you shortly. This is a duplex apartment, isn't it? Yes, sir. Reception hall, living room, dining room and kitchen on this floor. Library and three bedrooms on the second floor. Oh, pretty swank, I'd say. Pretty stuffy, I'd say. Thank you, Jordan. Well, as soon as the others come down, bring them in here, will you? Yes, at once, sir. Well, Doc, how's it look? Pretty cut and dried. Fistel in his hand, a hole in his head with powder stains around it. It looks like suicide, all right. How long has he been dead? Must have been killed about three o'clock. Thank you, pardon, sir. Here's Mr. Warner, Mr. Miller's nephew. Oh, how do you do, Mr. Warner? I'm Nick Carter. Nick Carter? Yes. I'm acting for Sergeant Matheson of the Metropolitan Police. Oh, by the way, Jordan. Yes. I left word for my two assistants to meet me here as soon as they could. When they arrive, will you let me know, please? Of course, at once, sir. Mr. Warner, I understand you found your uncle's body. That's right, Mr. Carter. I did. Will you tell us about it? Well, of course. When I was here last week, I left my camera here. I wanted to take some pictures this morning, so I dropped in here about 9.30 to pick it up. Who let you in? No one, Mr. Carter. I have my own key at the apartment. I came into the living room here, so my uncle lying there on the floor obviously dead. So I called Jordan, who came down immediately and informed the police. That's about all. Was the outer apartment door locked when you came in? Yes. Both the regular safety lock and the regular lock were on? Mm-hmm. There any windows opening under the fire escapes? Leave it all fast and securely, sir. I checked them myself to make sure. Then no one could have come in from the outside. No, hardly. Not with the door and windows all locked as they were. I see. Mr. Carter, what's the idea of all these questions? It was suicide, wasn't it? Yes, purely routine, that's all. Has anything in this room been touched since the body was found? No, nothing. Good. Is that your uncle's pistol in his hand? It looks like it, yes. Yeah, let me take it. You recognize it? No, don't touch it. There may be fingerprints on it. That's why I'm holding it with my handkerchief. Yes. Yes, that's my uncle Gunnar. There's no question about that. Yes, sir, it's Mr. Miller's gun, Mr. Carter. I've seen it often. Mm-hmm. And one of the shells is empty. And one shot has been fired. Well, that's all it took to kill him. Hey, wait a minute. What is it? This is unusual to say the least. There's an empty shell in the chamber, but the pistol barrel is clean. What's that, Nick? You see? Either the barrel has been clean since the shot was fired, or the shot wasn't fired from this gun. Then this can't be suicide. Can't be suicide? No, it's definitely not suicide. It's murder. Murder, sir? Toys your man's niece. Say she lives here? Yes, sir. She'd be down directly, sir. Mr. Carter, she knows nothing about this. She was still asleep when we formed the police. Jordan called her afterward. That's right, sir. I did. She knows nothing of this. Maybe, and maybe not. I'd like to talk to her anyway. Because of what you tell me about the door and windows all being locked and from the condition of the murder weapon, this must have been an inside job. One of you three is guilty. Well, now look here, Mr. Carter. Good morning, Mr. Warner. This is now in the hands of the police. May I use your phone, please? There's one on the desk, sir. Oh, that one's not working, Mr. Carter. If you come with me, I'll show you the one in the library upstairs, all right? I know that one's all right. This one has a short circuit or something. Thanks. Be right back, Dr. Good morning, sir. Sorry to trouble you. No, no, not at all. You better call Sergeant Matheson, have him send his homicide experts up here, as well as the cop to stand guard. Well, you probably want you all to go down the headquarters for a talk. I see. The murderer has to be treated very differently from suicide. Yeah. Oh, there's the library right ahead of you. You'll find the phone in there. Thanks. Hi, scummy. Must cause a fortune to live here. Oh. This is apartment four, Patsy, right here. Uh-huh. What is it, please? Is Mr. Carter here? Mr. Carter? Yes, Mr. Nick Carter, the detective. You must have the wrong number, miss. What number were you looking for? Look, is this 717 West Hampton Street or isn't it? That's correct, sir. And is this apartment four or isn't it? That's quite right, sir. OK, then where is Nick Carter? I'm very sorry, sir, but there must be some mistake. Mr. Anthony Miller lives here. There's no Mr. Carter. Well, didn't the man kill himself here last night? Oh, my goodness, no, miss. You're all mixed up. Well, sc-scubby, did Sergeant Matheson tell you the name of the dead man? No, said whoever phoned didn't give it to him. Well, we must have the address wrong, Patsy. Maybe. Uh, could-could we use your phone? Well, of course, miss, if you'll step into the living room. There to your left. There's a pool in there. Ah, thanks. Come on, scubby. OK. If you give the Sergeant a buzz and see what's wrong. Right there, sir, on the desk. Right on, thanks. If you'll pardon me for a moment, please. Well, sure, go ahead. Well, let me speak to Sergeant Matheson. One moment, please. Oh, I wonder how it would be to live in a place. Homicide, Sergeant Matheson. Oh, Maddie, this is scubby. Yeah, what's on your mind, scubby? Oh, Nick must have given us the wrong address when he told us to follow him up town of this suicide place. What is the address? Just a minute. Here it is. It's 717 West Hampton Street, apartment 4. But that's where we are, Maddie. And they don't know anything about it here. What's that? No, the butler tells us there's been no suicide here. Well, hey, that's the address they gave us this morning when they phoned. Well, have you heard from Nick or the medical examiner? Hey, come to think of it, I have it. And that's a funny thing, too. It's over two hours since they left here. You ought to be back by now. Hey, why didn't they call and say they got the wrong address? There's something mighty funny going on, scubby. Yeah, looks like it. Well, we'll see what we can find. Maybe it's an address that sounds like this one. We'll call you in a little while if we don't find anything. Okay, I'll tell the boys to watch out for Nick and Doc. Right, so long. You know any more than we do? No. He hasn't heard from Nick or the Doc since they left headquarters about two hours ago. What are you looking at? I was just thinking. Whoever lives here has pretty poor taste, even if they do have money. How do you mean? Well, look at the rug in this room. The wrong color. It's definitely too small for the size of the floor. And the rug in the next room, which must be the dining room, puts entirely the wrong color for the decorative effect in that room. And that one's much too big for the size of the floor. Yeah, you're right, Patsy. It's funny that people live in such swell places. It should furnish their room so badly. Yeah. It almost looks as if these two rugs have been switched around, doesn't it? Patsy, maybe that's just what did happen. Maybe... Here, let me get a look at the rug under that dining table. I'll shove the table over to one side and have a good look. Okay. Are you looking for something, sir? Yeah, darn right. I'm looking for something. You better hope I don't find it. I have to ask you to stop moving that dining table. If you try to stop me, I'll put a gun between your ribs. I'll call the police. Go ahead, call them if you dare. There. Scabby, look. Right in the center of the rug. A big blood stain. That's what I thought. And I'll bet my last dollar that you'll find a blood stain that same size and shape in the center of the living room floor. Then someone was killed here. Yes, Patsy. And Nick and the doctor were here, too. This whole business about there being no killing here is a frame-up. Now you talk and talk fast. What have you done with Nick Carter? Every man in every squad car is to be on the lookout for him. Now repeat that description I gave you. Right. Right. Now, now, now, it's Gerald Warner. Yeah, he was the old man's nephew. Okay, let me know as soon as you hear anything. Now, Jordan, look here. You're in a pretty tight spot. If you don't want this murder app pinned on you, you better talk and you better say plenty. But I tell you, I know nothing about it. And you still say you don't know where the old man's niece went either, huh? Miss Hammond? No, sir. She put on a hat and coat and went out cutting a small overnight bag. Where'd she go? I don't know, sir. Ah, look, don't be a sap. The butler always knows everything about a killing. And most of the time, the butler done the murder himself. Now look, we've proved that the bloodstain, scubby, and patsy found was human blood. We found Nick Carter's fingerprints on the desk, the table, and the upstairs phone. We found the old man's body stuck in that upstairs closet in your apartment. And you don't know nothing about it. Well, Sergeant, here's the bullet. They just took out a miller's body. Let me see it. Ah, now that's an ordinary 32 caliber slug. Yeah, but it was big enough to kill him. I know that. What I mean was... Well, I didn't hear Nick Carter's back from searching Gerald Warner's apartment. Oh, yeah? They find anything? Nothing very valuable. Oh, they did find a telephone number for the niece, Francis Hammond. Uh-oh. There were two numbers and one a small directory. One was her home and the other, according to the chief operator, is at 62 East Pines Street. Now, what the deuce would that be? Well, maybe she's got a girlfriend there. That's it, Scubby. Patsy, this is a job for you. Uh-huh. Go to this address and see if Francis Hammond is there. If she is, tell her you're a reporter. Find out how much she knows. Get as much of the story out of her as you can. And if she's not there? All right. Maybe you can find out where she is. But go on. Get going and hurry. Right. Maybe you can big up something that'll tell us where Nick is. Any idea where we are, Doc? No. Looks sorta like somebody's hunting shack. Yes, I can see that. That doesn't help much. Well, as long as we're tied up to these two chairs like we are, it doesn't make much difference what part of the world we're in. We're no good to anybody this way. Oh, the thing that makes me madest is the way they fooled me so completely. I never did see who hit me. Well, considering that there were only two men in the place and that the butler was with me, it isn't very hard to figure out who tapped you for the count. I was out cold from the time I was knocked out until I came to in this place. My wrist was so relaxed when they tied me that I can't work them loose. No, you don't think I got into this mess because I was bored. Well, I... I don't understand how you found out where I was staying, Miss Bowen. Your cousin told me, Miss Hammond, but it was he who suggested that I come here. He knew reporters would be pestering me for interviews after... after Uncle Anthony killed himself. And he said if I came here, they wouldn't be able to find me. He promised me he wouldn't tell anyone. But he only gave me your address because he knew I wouldn't pass to you. He and I have been friends for years. I hope he doesn't tell anyone else. I'm sure he won't. And now, may I ask you a question or two? I suppose so. I really don't feel much like talking about it. I know, Miss Hammond. You loved your uncle, didn't you? Very much. He was always so good to me. Were you and your cousin engaged? Well, not quite. Uncle wanted us to get married. In fact, he... he made a will leaving me all his money because, well, he... he thought that would keep Gerald more interested in me. Was Gerald, uh, Mr. Warner, interested in anyone else? Oh, no, it wasn't that. Uncle Anthony knew that Gerald wasn't ready to settle down yet. He was trying to persuade him it would be the best thing for him. Do you know where your cousin is now? I know, I don't. Why do you ask me where he is? Don't you know? What? Uh, wait, wait, you see, he, um, asked me to send him a copy of whatever I wrote in my interview with you. But he's left town and he didn't leave me his address. Can you tell me? Why, I don't know. When he wants to get out of town, he generally goes to Atlantic City, a hotel martis, or with a hunting shack up in Norris County. He might be in either place, I suppose. Uh-huh. Well, I'll send a copy of the interview to each of these addresses. One of them ought to reach him. Uh, tell me, Miss Hammond, did you know where your uncle kept his pistol? Well, of course. We all knew it. It was no secret. I've seen it often. But I... I never thought he'd use it to... to do this. Oh, then, Miss Hammond, I'm sorry I mentioned it. Please don't let it upset you. I'll just run along now. Goodbye. And thanks. Across the room by moving your chair like this when you try it up and at this weight, isn't the simplest thing in the world. And I can't make my chair move at all. But you're doing fine. Am I getting anywhere near that table yet? You're doing great, Nick. Just a little more. I'm moving backwards this way. It's hard to tell where I'm going. To your left. Just a hair. That's it. Now you got it. Ah, so far so good. Now, that's where's the bottle, Doc. With my back toward this way, I can't see where it is. It's almost directly in back view. About a foot from the edge of the table. All right. I'll pull the tablecloth toward me. And that'll bring the bottle near the edge where I can get hold of it. Watch it while I pull it now. Is it coming? Doc, careful now. It's almost there. Hold it. It's right at the edge. You ought to be able to get it now. I can if I can get my hands up that high. Whoever tied my arms and back of this chair did too good a job. There's no slack at all. That's it. There. I got it. Now, I can break this bottle against the fireplace. I should have a sharp edge that'll cut these ropes in short order. Only moving inch at a time this way. It's slow work getting anywhere. Keep me going in the right direction, Doc. Oh, you're doing fine, Nick. Only a little more now. Two, you left a bit. That's it. You ought to be able to reach it now. You can hit it all, right? Yeah. All right, here goes, Doc. You did it, Nick. Now edge your chair over toward me. You can cut my ropes first, and I'll cut yours. Gosh, Nick. You're the eighth wonder of the world. Thanks, Doc. Well, look out. Here I come. Homicide, Sergeant Matheson. Oh, yeah, Chief. You say Gerald Warner isn't at the Hotel Martise and hasn't been there for several months, huh? Okay, thanks very much, Chief. Yeah, that's what we wanted to know. We know where to look for him now. Yeah, thanks. So long. That wasn't so bad, Nick, but it took longer to cut through the ropes with that piece of glass than I thought it would. Well, we're free, and that's the main thing. Have you found anything around the shack here that looks like a clue? I'm not sure, Doc, but I'd rather think so. I found these two pistols in the back of one of the cupboards. They're very unusual pair of guns. Oh, here. This gun has one empty shell in it. The barrel is clean. It's not been fired. Well, that's the gun that was in the old man's hand when we found him, isn't it? I'm pretty sure it is. Now look at this other gun. Huh? This one has no empty shells in it. The barrel is dirty, and from the smell of it has been fired very recently. I see what you mean. See, that does make them a little queer, doesn't it? Well, Douglas, I see it. Warner killed Miller with his own gun. Then he tried to make it look like suicide, but he couldn't leave his own gun there. So we got his uncle's gun, which hadn't been fired. Took the empty shell out of his gun and exchanged it for a full shell for his uncle's gun, and put that gun in his uncle's hand. And he was just excited enough not to realize that the barrel of his uncle's gun was still clean. Of course. But, well, why didn't he fire the other gun instead of going through all that rigmarole about changing the empty shell for the full one? Probably afraid that a second shot would wake up somebody who might have been partly aroused by the first shot, the one that killed his uncle. Well, I have to admit that it makes sense the way you tell it. And you still think that it will pay us to wait here for somebody to show up? Yes, Doc, I do. Because if anyone was planning to get rid of us, they'd have done it tonight, and they'd have to do it tonight. It wouldn't dare wait until tomorrow. Someone might find us in the meantime. So if we wait, someone will sure show up. Okay, you're the doctor. As far as catching murderers goes. You say wait, we wait. You're right, Nick. There's somebody now. Now, remember, sit and get shared with your back to the door. Hold the ropes as if he was still tied up and unconscious. Like this? Let your head drop on your chest more. Right. Now, that's well done. Now, you look as if he were dead to the world. I'll do the same. Quiet. Here they are. Oh, what do you know? It's still not cold. I must have given him a stiffer dose than I thought I did. I won't hurt him. Makes it easier for us. Yeah, you're quite right, Mike. What are we going to do next? I still think our best plan is to dump them in the old quarry. It's close by, and it's full of water. We'll wait the bodies, and they'll never be found. Yeah, it's an awful lot of killing just to get a hold of an old will. Not at all, Mike. If I could have taken the will without killing anyone, I would have been glad to do it that way. But since I couldn't, I'm not going to worry about it. And it's worth every bit of my trouble, believe me. A will I destroyed left everything to my cousin. Now that that's out of the way, I am the old man's only living relative. So lair to everything he owns. And that's plenty. Yeah. What about that niece of his, who is your cousin? Ah, but she's not really his niece. She's just a girl he sort of unofficially adopted. He always planned to adopt her legally, but he will never got around to it. So she gets nothing. He was on a marry, huh? Marry her? Oh, no indeed, Mike. She's not my type at all. I just get it around with her to keep in right with the old man. But that's all over now. Well, I hope it works out like you wanted to. Well, I certainly had bad breaks so far. First, the old man catches me at the safe. Then headquarters sends up Nick Carter instead of a regular cop. Then with a butler and the plan that I had the apartment all fixed up so you'd never know there'd been a killing Carter's two assistants show up. And the girl notices the rugs have been switched. That tips off the whole frame up. Ah, their troubles are over now. They will be as soon as we get rid of these two midlis. Yeah, better do it pretty quick now. Take it easy just as soon as it gets a little darker, Mike. Hey, got any old burn lamp bags we can put them in? Yeah. Yeah, they're somewhat back. I'll show you where they are. Okay, better have them ready when we want them. How's that chance, Doc? Come on. Let me have one of those shotguns we loaded before. Here, Nick. Thanks. Now you take the other one. Get behind the cupboard there. I'll hide over here. All right, Nick. You say when. Let me do the talking. Quiet now. Mike. Mike, look, they've gone. That ain't possible. I just set your hands up high. Hey, Carter! How did you... We'll talk about that later. All right, Doc, I'll hold the gun on them while you tie their hands and tie them tight the way they tied ours. It'll be a pleasure, Nick. A positive pleasure. Oh, wait till I tie them. Well, Mr. Warner, this isn't coming out just the way you planned it, is it? You've got no proof against me, Carter. You're wrong, Warner. When you knocked me out in your uncle's apartment, you proved you killed him. Tell that to a jury and see how far you get. Oh, that's not legal evidence. It's true. But I have some other evidence that is legal. Why, Warner, between the time Doc and I got free and the time you and Mike got here, we searched this shack of yours. And hidden in one of the cupboards, we found these two guns. Well, sir, you found two guns in a hunting shack. That's really remarkable. One of these guns is the one that was in your uncle's hand when I first saw his body. The other one, I feel sure, is the one that actually killed him. And if I'm not mistaken, it'll be registered in your name, have your fingerprints on it, and we'll fire a bullet that'll match the bullet that killed your uncle. Would you call those things legal proof? All right, all right. Yes, that's the gun I killed him with. You know, Carter, I should have killed you when I had the chance. Yes, it would have been wiser than to... Come in, Fatsy. What's all the excitement? Oh, Nick, I've been so afraid. Afraid of what? Afraid for you. Fatsy, you should know me better than that. So how did you get down here anyway? Well, when Sergeant Matheson got word from the landing city that Warner wasn't there, I mean, it's got to be driving down here as fast as it could. Yeah, she wouldn't let me stop and park anywhere. I never have any luck when I'm out with her. Well, you got here just in time to drive back with us. I was just going to take Mr. Warner and his friend here back to town to meet Matty. Oh, gosh, Nick, after that thug tried to tell me that you'd never been in the apartment when you had, why... Oh, I was ready for anything. But she got even with him. I sure did. He thought I wouldn't know that they'd switch the rugs around. But I did. That'll teach him. Yes, Fatsy. This is one time when a woman's instinct for interior decoration really solved a murder. Well, Nick, how about a glimpse into next week's story of intrigue and adventure? You use the right word that time, Ken, because next week I'm going to tell you a story in which intrigue is the keynote. A man in the death house with only nine hours to live asked me to prove him innocent of the charge in which he'd been convicted. He claimed he was the victim of the frame-up. And when Nick really got into the case, he found that the whole thing was a frame-up, but not quite the way we expected. You mean you investigated the case and found a solution in only nine hours? That's right, Ken. They were very busy nine hours. And a man's life hung in the balance. What do you call your story, Nick? I call it nine hours to live. Nick Carter, master detective, which is produced and directed by Jock McGregor, is copyrighted by Street and Smith Publications Incorporated. Pictured stories of Nick Carter appear in every issue of the Shadow Comics. In the adventures of Nick Carter, master detective, Lon Clark is starred as Nick. Charlotte Manson is featured as Patsy. Mattie is played by Ed Latimer. Scubby by John Cain. Original music is played by George Wright. Script is by Jock McGregor. Any resemblance in these programs to actual persons living or dead or to actual places is purely coincidental. Nick Carter, master detective, is presented over most of these stations each week at this same time. This is Ken Powell saying, so long until next week. This is The Mutual.